GIVEAWAY!!!!!

Check out my friend Sandy's blog....she has the coolest "Christmasy" giveaway!

Warning! Warning! This Blog May Get Graphic!

PREFACE: This is lengthy but please read it all. Please refer to this as a link in your own blog so that MANY people will read this with only a few days left before the election. The FACTS listed below are from various sources but alot of it comes specifically from something I read that was written by Huntley Brown who is a pianist for Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. He is a Jamaican and his wife is from the island of Barbados.

I am going to be very controversial I am sure. I don't care. I am really frustrated with people walking around like the "Stepford Americans"! No matter what is proven to be factual about Obama, there are people who continue to support what may be the most liberal President we have ever had in office in the United States of America. Mix that with the very liberal Congress that is currently in office and we are in for a serious time. I must say that I agree with Joe Biden on one thing....we need to "gird our loins"!

I will give Obama credit for being a very charismatic speaker. He could probably sell ice cream to an Eskimo! (that was for Sarah Palin)

My greatest concern is that this is a racial election. There are many people who are voting for him because he is black. They are not voting for him because they agree with his policies, or because he is a good person or he would be a great leader. They are basing their vote on the sole fact that he is black. Many people will say that is not true but if they were being honest they would say that is their main reason for voting for him. I heard one person describe it as "processing their identity through their blackness". As Christians, we should be processing our identity through Christ and voting based on what the Bible teaches us as Christians. We should NEVER vote for anyone because of the color of their skin. When we get to heaven we won't be judged because of the color of our skin, we will be judged on whether or not we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.

Martin Luther King said don't judge someone by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. There are several things that should throw up red flags regarding the character of Obama. We don't know him personally so the only "character check" we can do is look at his voting record and the people that he surrounds himself and his family with in his life.

Well, the National Journal said: Obama: Most Liberal Senator in 2007 (1/31/2008). He did this in only two years. Think what he could do in the next four years!
I read an article that said the following:
- There is a reason Planned Parenthood gives him a 100% rating
- There is a reason the homosexual community supports him
- There is a reason Ahmadinejad, Chavez, Castro, Hamas, the nation of Islam, etc. love him
- There is a reason he said he would nominate liberal judges to the Supreme Court
- There is a reason he voted against the infanticide bill
- There is a reason he voted NO on the constitutional ban of same-sex marriage
- There is a reason he voted NO on banning partial birth abortions
- There is a reason he voted NO on confirming Justices Roberts and Alito
These two judges are conservatives and they have since overturned partial birth abortion - the same practice Obama voted to continue.
I was going to describe this 5 step procedure of partial birth abortion but I decided to spare you the details. Trust me it is bad and if you really want to know it is easily found on the internet. Once you understand what actually happens in this procedure you should be upset that we even consider it in our country....that people have even wasted the time, paper, and energy to try to pass it.
- There is a reason Obama opposed the parental notification law.
Do you find it strange that I have to go through an act of congress, give consent, sign papers, etc. to give my child an Ibuprofen while she is in school but that same child can have an abortion without my consent??? How much sense does this make?
- There is a reason he went to Jeremiah Wright's church for 20 years. Obama says he has good judgment and wants us to believe that. Yet, he sat and listened to this man's Anti-American and Anti-Christian teachings for 20 years. Not only did he listen to it, but he took his wife and children and exposed them to it as well. Now, of course, he is condemning Wright's sermons. Why now after 20 years??? Obama credits Jeremiah Wright for leading him to the Lord and discipling him. A disciple by definition is "one who is in training". This means to teach people to think like you, walk like you, talk like you, believe what you believe, etc. What exactly did Jeremiah Wright teach him? Would you support a white President who went to a church which has tenets that said they have a:
1. Commitment to the white community
2. Commitment to the white family
3. Adherence to the white work ethic
4. Pledge to make the fruits of all developing and acquired skills available to the white community
5. Pledge to allocate regularly a portion of personal resources for strengthening and supporting white institutions
6. Pledge allegiance to all white leadership who embrace the white value system
7. Personal commitment to embrace the white value system
Just change the word from white to black and that is what is taught and practiced at the church that Obama attended for the past 20 years.
This is nothing short of racism. The church is not about race. Jesus did not die on the cross for one specific race. He died for the whole world...red, and yellow, black and white.
Jeremiah Wright is a disciple of liberal theologian James Cone who authored the book in 1970 "A Black Theology of Liberation". He wrote "Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people, then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him." Cone is the man that Obama's mentor looks up to.

I don't think that God would tell one Christian to vote for McCain and another to vote for Obama. These are decisions that people are making on their own. It is possible that I am too am not listening to God by voting for McCain (which I did yesterday). One way to be sure is to compare what Obama says, believes, and votes for to what Jesus teaches in the scriptures. He definitely contradicts the scriptures so I don't think I am wrong about this one.

What if Jesus Christ was standing beside you in the voting booth. When he asked "who are you voting for?" Would you say, well Jesus, I am going to vote for Obama EVEN THOUGH I KNOW that he will continue and support the practice of partial birth abortions, I know that he will nominate liberal judges who will be making laws that are against you, I know that he will continue to support and push the homosexual agenda (even though you destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for this), but I know it is OK to look the other way because of the economic situation.

Who would Jesus vote for? Isn't that who we should choose?

Just some thoughts.....

I find myself "home alone" this afternoon....just me and the dogs. That is a pretty good thing except it makes me lazy. I have only had a desire this weekend to lay around and do nothing. And I must say I have excelled at it! I am working on perfecting it right now! Technically I am on a Fall Break and do not have a class coming up this week (so no homework!) and I am enjoying it. I am getting ready to start my very last class before I graduate in December. Yeah me! (I know..I know...it has taken something like 25 years but who is counting!) Anyway, this will be a doozy of a class from what I have read on the syllabus but I need it to graduate. So, the next 8 weeks are going to be rough but then I am finished.

I don't really have anything major to blog about so I will try some random thoughts.

Did you know that generic toilet paper will last FOREVER! It is totally against my religion to buy generic toilet paper but apparently it is not against my husbands. I thought I taught him better than that. Not only did he buy generic toilet paper but he bought the huge package. We have had the same package of toilet paper for 2 months.....I don't think we will ever use it all! I actually think it is multiplying.

Why do all boys/men want motorcycles? They are so dangerous. What is it?

I am so sick of hearing about the "campaign trail" and all the ridiculous stuff about the election. I wish it was over and the bad news given. At least then we could listen to actual news. Let's get back to the stealing, cheating, lying, killing, kidnapping, and all the other garbage, I mean information, that our news usually provides to us. It is actually very similar to the campaign news now that I think about it.

Along those same lines, the whole electoral college doesn't seem fair to me. Am I missing something?

For all you Myspace and Facebook fans out there, what in the world does "crunk" mean??? These websites allow you to put your mood on there and I see alot of people with "crunk" as their mood. I have no idea what that means and maybe I shouldn't be asking...I don't know...it could be bad I guess.

I use to really fuss at my kids about texting. I asked them "why do you text a whole conversation with someone when you can just call them?" I have a confession that I am now addicted to texting and have complete conversations with people by text. I'm not sure what the turning point was but I have definitely been sucked in! Try it!

I find exercise equipment is a great place to hang clothes.

I have a secret desire to be Samantha Brown. You know the lady on the Travel Channel that gets to check out all the great vacations, hotels, spas, etc. I want her job! How great is that! You always see her on cruise ships, private islands, luxury hotels. Seriously, where do you apply for jobs like that?

I think if I were Samantha Brown, one of the greatest things about the travel would be that you would never have to unpack. I don't mind packing but I cannot stand to unpack.

A couple of light bulb moments......

Pork Barrel spending - just figured out this week what that actually was. Who knew? I thought it was some kind of stock in pork. Who thought of that?

You know the wonderful song all Tennesseeans love...Rocky Top! There is a verse that says:
"Corn won't grow at all on Rocky Top, Dirt's too rocky by far
That's why all the folks on Rocky Top, get their corn from a jar
My daughter (20 years old who shall remain nameless but does have a blog of her own.....)just learned today that the corn from a jar was not canned corn. Imagine her surprise when she found out!

Like mother like daughter!!!

That is about as random as I can be for now. Bonjour!

Halloween.....Not everyone agrees....

OK....this will probably be lengthy but important. Stay with me! I seriously love the fall season(except for the allergies) and I love the colors, the weather, mums, pumpkins and all the things that are typically associated with this time of year.....except the dreaded HALLOWEEN!

As promised, I am now going to share some of my thoughts on this pagan holiday named Halloween. Let me just begin by saying that for many years I have been chastised by friends and family regarding my distaste for Halloween. It is an ongoing joke in my workplace at this time of year. I would also like to say that I have not always had this opinion. I grew up "celebrating" Halloween by dressing up in various costumes, trick-or-treating, etc. and I actually enjoyed it. When my kids were little, we were all about dressing up and trick-or-treating to various neighborhoods, friends and family. The more candy the better! However, about 10 or 12years ago I was enlightened. I began by looking at the true meaning of Halloween and how it actually began. Many people, including myself, had never been told or researched what the actual meaning and purpose of Halloween is. When we really started reading about it and came to understand, we (my husband and I)decided our family would no longer participate in this pagan holiday.

Just a little background:

Halloween's origins actually go all the way back to the Celtic festival Samhain (pronounced SOW-ain). This was a time when they (the Celts and Druids)honored the end of summer and harvest time and prepared for a period of cold, darkness, and winter. The Celts believed that this marked the time in which the barrier between the living and the dead became thin. On October 31st (or thereabouts), the spirits would come back from the dead and create havoc, cause illnesses, damage the crops with frost and cause many other troubles.
Samhain was, and still is, considered to be a very mystical and magical time that was 'between' the seasons and the years. It was considered to be the time that the spirits of those who have passed on could walk among the living. The "veil" between the two worlds was and still is considered to be the thinnest at this time of year. Thus the perfect time for practicing witchcraft and divination and speaking with the dead.

Halloween today is usually performed by people practicing witchcraft who use this night for their rituals. Witches celebrate Halloween as the "Feast of Samhain" and it is a time for them to attempt to communicate with the dead through various forms of divination. In Deuteronomy 18, God says "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or that uses divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord..." I believe the Bible is very specific when it says that Christians should not be involved with occultic practice or divination.

Traditions of Halloween:

One of the traditions of Halloween, dressing up in costumes, began in England where the citizens, knowing it was a time for the spirits to come back from the dead, would dress up in masks and costumes to keep the spirits from recognizing them.

Another tradition that I am not very fond of is the Jack-O-Lantern. Not to imply that pumpkins themselves are bad. But...Occultists would try to scare away the spirits by carving scary faces into a pumpkin or some other vegetable. This horrible "face" would hopefully move the spirit on to another home or village and spare their home from destruction. Sometimes they would light a candle and place it within the pumpkin and use it as a lantern (hence the name Jack-o-Lantern). There is also a story about "Stingy Jack" that I won't go into.

Remember bobbing for apples?....In some witchcraft covens, the closing rituals include eating an apple or engaging in fertility rites. In the Bible (Genesis 3), eating a piece of fruit brought sin and death into the world. In witchcraft, eating an apple is symbolic of bringing life. (Of course, the opposite) The practice of bobbing for apples actually brings together two pagan traditions: divination and the fertility ritual.

It is my opinion that by participating in this pagan holiday, we are showing our approval and promoting witchcraft (and the witch), divination, haunted houses, and other occultic practices. These are very real things in our world today. There are many people who are practicing these rituals....it is not just an ancient religion but is a religion of today as well. I don't think many people understand that. As Christians, we are suppose to be different and not of this world. Halloween is a "worldly" holiday which glorifies the dark things of this world rather than the light of Jesus Christ.

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." (Ephesians 6:12)

"Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God." (3 John 1:11)

"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil." (1 Thess 5:21-22)

I understand that many people (including some Christians) do not share my same feelings about this. I do not judge those who choose to participate but I am very adamant in my discussions about this subject.....even to the point of being the "butt" of the joke...which is fine...there is always someone around that asks me "why" when the subject comes up and I am happy to tell them.

The Blame Game

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Take a look at this.....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMnSp4qEXNM
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I cannot for the life of me understand why anyone would want to be President of the United States. No matter what you do, what you say, where you go, or what wonderful accomplishments you may have, you will always be perceived as WRONG! Every bad thing that happens will be your fault. How fun is that?

In our current economic crisis, we continue to hear how this is all George W. Bush's fault. Apparently this is not a "new" policy that has been occurring to create this mess. It appears that the Clinton Administration had the idea that everybody in the free world should be entitled to a mortgage even if they didn't have the money or didn't qualify for a normal home loan. There use to be a day when banks had certain areas or neighborhoods that were designated as "no-loan zones". These were depressed neighborhoods where lending money to home buyers was not only just a risky investment but it was pretty certain that it would be a future foreclosure.

From what I have read, this practice was referred to as "redlining" and President Clinton and his good ole boys on Capitol Hill decided that banks should no longer act like banks and lend money only to home buyers who could afford to handle the monthly payments. It was decided that people who were less than creditworthy - speculators - would be entitled by law to obtain mortgages even when it was obvious they couldn't afford them.

Then who comes on the scene???? Our wonderful friends Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac! They poured money into the banking system by buying up these mortgages from the banks. In the long run, they managed to buy up billions and billions of dollars of risky mortgages that the banks had been forced to offer and then dumped on them. At least with Enron people went to jail! With Fannie and Freddie, people just walked away with millions! Why are we allowing this?

The collapse of Lehman Brothers can be blamed on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two big mortgage banks that the Feds recently spent big bucks to bail out. As Fox News pointed out, they used huge lobbying budets and political contributions to keep the regulators off their backs.

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, the top three U.S. Senators getting large political dollars from Fannie and Freddie were Democrats....AND surprise, surprise the #2 was Senator Barack Obama! Who, by the way, Fox noted had only been in the Senate four years but still managed to grab that #2 spot ahead of many of his longtime colleagues such as John Kerry and Chris Dodd (chairman of the Senate Banking Committee).

According to Fox, Fannie and Freddie were where the big-time Washington Democrats went to work to pocket millions of dollars. Franklin Raines, Clinton's White House Budget Director, ran Fannie and collected $50 million. Jamie Gorelick, an official in Clinton's Justice Department worked for Fannie Mae and took home $26 million. (She was the woman who built the "wall" that prevented the FBI from targeting terrorists before 9/11) Big-time Democrat Jim Johnson, who headed Obama's VP search committee also took in millions from running Fannie Mae.

Obama brazenly blames John McCain and the GOP for the current Wall Street mess when it is clear that it was truly not due to Republican policies. The truth of the matter is that it was McCain and three GOP colleagues who sought to reform the government's lending policies three years ago after the Bush Administration had failed two years earlier. On May 25, 2006, McCain spoke on behalf of the Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005 and warned against the mess that we are now facing if it failed to pass.

He also told the Senate that a report by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight charged that "Fannie Mae employees deliberately and intentionally manipulated financial reports to hit earnings targets in order to trigger bonuses for senior executives."

McCain warned "If Congress does not act, American taxpayers will continue to be exposed to the enormous risk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose to the housing market, the overall financial system, and the economy as a whole." It sounds like he predicted the entire collapse that we are now facing. He brought to light the falsification of financial records to benefit executives and included Obama advisers Franklin Raines and Jim Johnson.

Now Obama has the nerve to try to pin the blame on McCain and the GOP when it appears that the facts actually point to the Democratic party. Don't think for a moment that I hold the Republican party blameless. There is definitely enough blame for everyone but......I do think it is pretty lame for Obama to point his finger at John McCain when he has 3 fingers pointing back at himself!

What is wrong with America? Washington has so many corrupt politicians that it is truly scary! Unfortunately, I believe that Obama is definitely one of the corrupt and we are in for some serious times ahead! I keep asking myself "how can they not see it!" Or is it maybe that their eyes are blinded for a reason and the end is very near?